Let There Be Light (Antelope Canyon)
Date: 10/28/2005
There are only a couple of months out of the year a person can see rays like these. They can only be observed in the middle of the day, and are brightest when it is somewhat windy and dusty. I went there specifically to photograph rays like these, and had finished, or so I thought. But when I got to the entrance, I saw a small group of people, and one of them had a tripod and camera, so I turned around to see what he was seeing, and this is what I saw. The sand destroyed two camera bodies for me that day, but it was worth it.
Horseshoe Bend
Date: 10/28/2005
Horseshoe Bend is near Page, Arizona. It's a fairly hard slog through loose sand over a fraction of a mile to reach this point from the parking lot.
Garden, Chinese Cultural Center
Date: 10/28/2005
This is the moon gate at the Chinese Cultural Center, in Phoenix, Arizona.
Ajo Mountain Spring
Date: 10/28/2005
This is inside Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. This was a good year for spring flowers. The yellow flowers are Brittlebush, Encelia farinosa. They are called Brittlebush because the stems snap off cleanly. The orange flowers at the bottom are Desert Mallow, Sphaeralcea ambigua. The hillside was also sprouting with photographers.
Arizona Sunset
Date: 10/29/2005
Taken in the Tucson Mountains. While spectacular sunsets are common in Arizona, thunderheads at sunset are relatively rare.
Castle Rock
Date: 10/29/2005
Castle Rock is north of Ajo, Arizona. The road there gets more and more difficult to drive, until finally the only thing that will handle it is an ATV. I got stuck, and some folks driving ATVs came along and helped me out. It was a good spring for flowers. These are Brittlebush, Encelia farinosa.
Winter
Date: 10/29/2005
Taken along the road in Redington Pass, which is between the Santa Catalina Mountains and the Rincon Mountains, northeast of Tucson, Arizona. The tall cactus is Saguaro, Carnegiea gigantea. The spindly plant in front is Ocotillo, Fouquieria splendens.
Sedona
Date: 10/29/2005
This is a view from the porch of the Chapel of the Holy Cross, in Sedona, Arizona. Sedona is world famous for its red rocks.
Glen Canyon
Date: 10/29/2005
The road into this area of Glen Canyon starts near Lees Ferry, Arizona. The flowers in front are Princes Plume, Stanleya pinnata.
Twilight
Date: 10/29/2005
Taken in the Tucson Mountains, Arizona. Sadly, the Saguaros (Carnegiea gigantea) are dying off. They're being killed by some kind of fungus for which there is no cure. Apparently environmental stress weakens them, and hard freezes in winter don't help. Of these two cacti, one is now completely gone, and the other has lost an arm.
Beckon to Infinity - Vermilion Cliffs
Date: 07/12/2006
This is on the road to the Vermilion Cliffs, near Page, Arizona. This land belongs to the Dineh Indians. The flowers are Desert Mallow.
Lockett Meadow - San Francisco Peaks
Date: 07/12/2006
Lockett Meadow is a relatively little known beauty spot in the San Francisco Peaks. The turnoff is opposite the turnoff to Sunset Crater. The trees there are Aspens and Pines.
Antelope Canyon
Date: 07/12/2006
Antelope Canyon is near Page, Arizona. It is a tribal park of the Dineh (Navajo) Indians. The shifting sunlight changes the colors of the rock in this narrow slot canyon. The rocks are sandstone, and the canyon was carved out by rushing monsoon water from summer rains. You must have a permit or go with a guide, and they won't let you in if there is rain 11 miles upstream, because you might not get out alive. Some people didn't, and there is a memorial to them. The best time of year to go is June; monsoon rains start in July and last through September.
Arizona Sunset
Date: 07/12/2006
View from my back yard in southern Arizona. I see such clouds often during certain times of the year.
Santa Catalina Mountains
Date: 07/12/2006
This is a view of the southern face of the Santa Catalina Mountains, north of the older part of Tucson, Arizona. The cactus in front is Prickly Pear, Opuntia sp.
Sunset with Tree
Date: 07/12/2006
I took this photo somewhere close to Colossal Cave, east of Tucson, Arizona, years ago.
Rushing Waters - Redington Pass
Date: 07/12/2006
I was driving through Redington Pass one day, and saw a car parked, so I decided to go see what they were looking at, and this is what I saw. These little creeks only run certain times of the year. There must be enough rain or snow to feed them, so they don't happen every year.
Sand Falls - Antelope Canyon
Date: 07/12/2006
You've seen waterfalls, but how about sand falls? View in Antelope Canyon (Dineh Indian tribal park), near Page, Arizona. This photo was taken the same day as the rays photo at the beginning of this album. There was so much wind in the canyon, that sand fell off the cliff here.
Japanese Friendship Garden - Phoenix
Date: 07/12/2006
The Japanese city of Himeji is a sister city of Phoenix, Arizona. The Japanese constructed this beautiful garden in the center of town.
Pusch Ridge - Catalina Mountains
Date: 07/12/2006
The prettiest side of the Santa Catalina Mountains in southern Arizona, at least in my opinion. This is the northwestern face.
White Tank Mountains
Date: 07/12/2006
This is on the road into the White Tank Mountains (named for a water tank in one of the canyons) that leads to a gorgeous trail going to a waterfall. The flowers in front are Desert Mallow, and the tall cactus is a Saguaro.
Vermilion Cliffs
Date: 07/12/2006
The Vermilion Cliffs are located southwest of Page, Arizona, and extend northward into Utah. This is a scene not far from Lees Ferry. This land belongs to the Dineh Indians.
Monument Valley with Tree
Date: 05/07/2007
Monument Valley is a famous location where movies have been made. It is a Dineh (Navajo) tribal park, located mostly in Arizona, though it is necessary to drive into Utah to reach it. It is located in northeastern Arizona.
On the Road to Monument Valley
Date: 05/07/2007
The state highway that goes to the turnoff to Monument Valley goes past this scene. The clouds were beautiful that day.
Monument Valley
Date: 05/07/2007
Another scene in Monument Valley Dineh tribal park. This park is the home of the two famous mitten buttes.
Lone Peak
Date: 02/25/2012
Located close to the border between Arizona and Utah, on the road to Monument Valley.
Catalina State Park in Spring
Date: 02/25/2012
Located near Tucson, Arizona. The flowers are poppies and the tall cacti are Saguaros.
Glen Canyon Rafting
Date: 02/25/2012
Glen Canyon Rafting. This location is reached by taking the road into the canyon that starts near Lees Ferry, Arizona.
Scene Near Bartlett Lake
Date: 02/25/2012
Central Arizona. The red flowers are Chuparosa. The tall cactus is a Saguaro.
Lost Dutchman State Park
Date: 02/25/2012
In the Superstition Mountains, between Phoenix and Globe. The yellow flowers are Brittlebush.
Kofa National Wildlife Refuge
Date: 02/25/2012
North of Ajo, Arizona. The flowers are Brittlebush. Notice how luxuriant these flowers are near the natural gas line. It was the only location where I found them.
Tucson Mountains
Date: 02/25/2012
Southern Arizona. The flowers are Palo Verde. The Palo Verde is a tree with a green trunk that contains chlorophyll. This makes food for the plant when it has no leaves.
Bartlett Lake
, central Arizona. The yellow flowers are Brittlebush.
Date: 02/25/2012
Central Arizona. The yellow flowers are Brittlebush.
Santa Catalina Mountains
Date: 02/25/2012
Near Tucson, Arizona. The flowers are Mexican Bird-of-Paradise.
Road to Vermilion Cliffs
Date: 02/25/2012
This is located on the Dineh Reservation in northern Arizona, near Page. The orange flowers in the distance are Desert Mallow.
Fall Aspens. View from the ski lift in the San Francisco Peaks. Unfortunately, due to extreme drought, the pines are dead.
Date: 02/26/2012
Fall Aspens. View from the ski lift in the San Francisco Peaks. Unfortunately, due to extreme drought, the pines are dead.
Entrance to the Cathedral
Date: 02/26/2012
Antelope Canyon, on the Dineh Reservation, is a tribal park. This scene puts me in a spiritual mood and reminds me that it feels like a cathedral in the canyon.
Pusch Ridge
Date: 02/26/2012
The prettiest face of the Santa Catalina Mountains, near Tucson, Arizona, with its rugged and dramatic cliffs.
Waterfall in White Tank Mountains
Date: 02/26/2012
Central Arizona. To reach this spot, it is necessary to hike a ways, and then climb up a very tall rock. I would never have made it without help. I used a wide angle lens because it is the only way I could get the entire waterfall, which is actually quite tall.
Poppies on the Apache Reservation
Date: 02/26/2012
East of Globe, Arizona. The tall cactus is a Saguaro.
Arivaca Cienega
Date: 02/26/2012
Arivaca Cienega. This is a well known birding spot. This is typical desert grassland. Southeastern Arizona. "Cienega" means "swamp" in Spanish, and there is quite a bit of water, which draws more birds, including ducks.
Miller Canyon Creek
Date: 02/26/2012
In the Huachuca Mountains, southeastern Arizona. Unfortunately, this view no longer exists. A terrible forest fire destroyed the bridge on which I was standing and completely reshaped the landscape.
Superstition Mountains
Date: 02/26/2012
This scene is along the southern face. Between Phoenix and Globe, Arizona. The cacti are Saguaros.
Creek in Catalina State Park
Date: 02/26/2012
Santa Catalina Mountains, near Tucson, Arizona. This creek is fed by mountain snow and rain, and doesn't run all the time.
Kofa National Wildlife Refuge
Date: 02/26/2012
North of Ajo, Arizona. The flowers in the foreground are Brittlebush.
Between Patagonia and Patagonia Lake
Date: 02/26/2012
Southern Arizona. Patagonia is a tiny town, with a very famous hummingbird site, and a park managed by Nature Conservancy. This scene is near the rest stop along the road.